STAND PAT THIS SUMMER

There seems to be a lot of different opinions regarding how the Sixers should handle the 2013 off-season.

Some of Philadunkia nation thinks that the organization should still plan to build around Bynum, while a large percentage of people don’t want to see him anywhere near this team or city again.

Then there are those who feel that the Sixers actually aren’t too far away from contention and could compete with a couple tweaks. However for every one with this view there are at least two others who feel that the team needs to be completely blown up.

The only thing certain now after the disappointing season that was for the Sixers, is uncertainty.

The hiring of Sam Hinkie is the first stride on a long staircase the Sixers are facing this summer. Finding a “basketball guy” to support Hinkie’s analytics, selecting a head coach, making draft picks, and filling out the roster with free agents are all still left on the agenda. With a new regime in town it is difficult to tell exactly how any of this will turn out.

With that being said, the smart thing for the Sixers to do this summer is — as little as possible.

Although it is extremely tempting to retool the roster, especially after the poor play of the past season, this summer’s free agent crop and draft class may not contain the proper players to solidify the Sixers. Outside of Dwight and CP3, there are no real “needle movers” hitting the market this summer, and assuming neither of them are jumping for joy at the thought of signing with the Sixers, the organization would be wise not to sign away the future of the franchise this summer.

While signing some fringe free agents like O.J. Mayo or J.J. Hickson won’t guarantee a championship chase, it will limit cap flexibility for the franchise in the future.

A likely late lottery pick in this year’s draft doesn’t look to be a big boost either, as this 2013 Draft class is widely considered a very weak group of prospects.

So, what the Sixers should do is stand pat, play out next year largely as is, hopefully stink for another season, and put themselves in great position for the 2014 Draft, as well as that summer’s free agent group.

While this summer’s draft class is maybe lacking some franchise-changing faces, the 2014 Draft is the exact opposite. The 2014 class boasts top high school prospect Andrew Wiggins, along with Oklahoma State standout Marcus Smart, and Duke commit Jabari Parker.

Wiggins has drawn comparisons to hall-of-famer Scottie Pippen, while Smart and Parker have earned more modern comparisons to Carmelo Anthony and James Harden, respectively.

So, keeping signings to a minimum this summer should not only help the Sixers’ salary cap situation for next summer, but it should also help to give them a good shot at landing a top lottery pick. Rather than trying to sign up some players this summer in order to remain relevant next season, the Sixers should accept their current state and embrace opportunities to improve the future of the franchise.